Day 5 Of 30 Days Of Drawing

There are more components to making art than most people are aware of.  Encapsulated within each component of the process is the entire process itself, in much the same way that the entire plant is contained within the seed.  

Drawing is so much more than skill with pen on paper that the skill with pen on paper is often dwarfed in comparison to the rest of the process.  The choices to be made are first and foremost.  What paper: Plain?  painted? patterned? photograph, etc.?  What medium: Pencil? ink? paint/type of paint? crayon? pastel, etc.?  What will the first mark be?  Where will it be made?  Will it be from the imagination?  Or from a model?  How much to add?  When to stop?  What to take away?  Positve space?  Negative space?  Photorealisim?  Realistic?  Abstract?  Whimsy?  Serious?  Color?  Grayscale? Lighting?  Collage/placement?  ...the list goes on, and it is endless.  Many of these decisions are automatic;  some are consciously thought out, sometimes easily, sometimes in agony.

Today's drawing is illustrative of a movie I saw and loved.  Nightwatch.  It's a Russian horror film, and a youtube video of the trailer follows.  If you are disturbed by horror movies, don't watch the video.  But if you love great special effects and are a fan of well acted, well scripted, beautifully lit, and beautifully fimed intensity, then this may be for you.  I won't tell you anything about it.  One person's description is another person's spoiler, and I hate spoilers.

As for my drawing, it's in the art journal/sketchbook that will be finished at the close of 2011.  Some of the decisions I made for this drawing were as follows:

• grayscale
• photographs
• deep green background paper
• Rapidograph and India ink
• Bats as stylized "V"s and other marks drawn around the roof tops of the photo on the left
• "Night Watch" as two words in all caps drawn by inking-in the negative space of a rectangle

 

I'm participating in Traci Bunkers 30 Days of Drawing.  There's room for everyone in this challenge, and I can guarantee that whatever you draw, you'll be better for it.  Click the link and join us!

Comments

[Rosie]

Fascinating! I love when you get all technical and detailed because you say what most of us just 'do'! I also like your bats - like my old valkyries!!
Go, girl, with the 30 days of drawing - I am loving it! =)

[Joanne Thieme Huffman]

I love the blend of conscious and unconscious decisions that people apply to their art. It changes with each piece we make. As always, I love your drawing.